76ers Bounce Back Behind 59 Points from VJ Edgecombe, Tyrese Maxey to Tie Series with Celtics
Philadelphia 76ers guard Vj Edgecombe takes a shot against Boston Celtics guard Baylor Scheierman (55) and forward Sam Hauser (30) during the first half of Game 2 of a first-round NBA playoffs basketball series, Tuesday, April 21, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
We got a series, folks.
After suffering one of their worst playoff losses in the franchise’s history, the Philadelphia 76ers suited up for Game 2 of their opening round matchup against the Boston Celtics. In the opener, the 76ers were defeated 123-91, a 31-point loss, making it the largest playoff opening win in the Celtics franchise history.
Game 2 was essentially a completely different script for Philadelphia, who seemed to have answered their offensive inconsistencies more specifically, getting two huge performances from their young backcourt in Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe.
The two star guards went off in the garden, combining for 59 points, helping the 76ers pull off the 111-97 victory over Boston to tie the series at 1-1. Edgecombe accounted for 30 of those points, also recording 10 rebounds for his first playoff double-double. The 30 points from Edgecombe are the third-most points in a postseason game in the 76ers franchise history.
Maxey was inconsistent throughout the night, but 12 points of his 29 came in the fourth quarter, helping the 76ers pull away from Boston late. Paul George also added 19 points, while Andre Drummond added 10 points and eight rebounds off the bench.
Right from the jump, the Celtics continued to do what they do best, knocking down threes and finding open men to jump out to an early lead. The 76ers, on the other hand, were doing just about the opposite, settling for easy jumpers in the paint and continuing to miss all of their three-pointers.
Philadelphia started 0-6 from beyond the arc, falling behind big through the first half of the first quarter. After a timeout from Nick Nurse and nine minutes of only layups and mid-range buckets, Tyrese Maxey finally ended the 76ers’ three-point struggles by hitting their first triple of the night.
Following that three, the 76ers went on a 10-0 run to cut it back to a one-possession game. Andre Drummond, who just checked in, knocked down a tip-in for his first bucket, Quentin Grimes followed that up with a three, and Maxey stole a pass from Payton Pritchard and slammed it on the other end.
Boston ended the scoreless run thanks to a floater from Nikola Vucevic, but as the final minute ticked down, George tipped in a Justin Edwards miss to make it 28-25 Celtics heading into the second quarter.
The Celtics started quarter two similarly to the first, knocking down three-pointers to jump back to an eight-point lead. Following a bucket from Tatum, the 76ers went on a 13-4 run to take their first lead since the opening minute.
The threes were finally falling for Philadelphia, with Grimes, George, and Drummond hitting triples on consecutive possessions to go down two. Edgecombe tied things up with a layup, and Drummond gave them the 41-39 point lead on a tip-in.
Both teams began trading buckets back and forth, with Edgecombe growing the 76ers’ lead with back-to-back long threes. Maxey kept it going with a mid-range jumper, but the Edgecombe show continued through the second quarter with five more points to go up five.
With a minute to play in the half, Jaylen Brown knocked down three free throws after being fouled shooting a three; however, Edgecimve answered back with his 4th triple of the game and 16th of the night, giving Philadelphia a 62-54 lead heading into the half. Edgecombe’s 16 points in the second quarter were the most points by a rookie in a quarter of a playoff game since Tyler Herro in 2020.
Out of the break, the 76ers and more specifically George, came out firing with five straight points, and Kelly Oubre Jr. added fuel to the fire, aka the lead, with five more points. Up by nine, the Celtics began pushing back, locking down their defense and hitting a few big buckets to make it a three-point game.
Following a short break on the bench, Edgcombe stepped back on the court and continued to dominate and put the 76ers back ahead big. Thanks to seven straight points from the rookie, the 76ers kept their lead, going up 84-77 heading into the final 12 minutes.
In the fourth, the Celtics continued to chip back at their deficit, once again using what they do best, threes and lockdown defense. Derrick White kicked things off with his second three-pointer of the night, and Tatum and Brown followed suit to cut the 76ers’ lead back to two.
While the shots weren’t falling for the majority of the night, Maxey flipped his script on the night, drilling back-to-back threes to go back up eight.
Nick Nurse and the 76ers kept their foot on the gas to close out the fourth, with Drummond knocking down a layup, Oubre and Edgecombe drilling three, and Maxey hitting an and-one layup and following that up with a dagger step back three to close things out.
Following that, Maxey three, Joe Mazzulla began emptying his bench as the final minutes ticked off the clock. The 76ers began dribbling out the final seconds, pulling out the 111-97 victory to tie the series up at 1-1.
Matt Brown
Matt has been a Philadelphia sports fan all his life and spent four years at Penn State University majoring in Broadcast Journalism and minoring in Sports Studies. He previously covered Penn State’s field hockey, men’s and women’s basketball, and baseball teams while writing for a Penn State blog called Onward State. He has now covered the Phillies, Eagles, and Sixers for Philly Sports Reports since October 2024 and wants to pursue a career in Sports Journalism.
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